Nyodene D - Edenfall

The power electronics scene is in some kind of torpid existence for a while already. Being always a megaphone of social protest and cultural criticism, maybe revolutionary spirit of old guiding forces of this genre ran dry a little bit. While the bands that leaded the scene 15-20 years ago rest on their laurels and there is no dominating force around, it is time for the newcomers to step on to vicious soil of this extreme art.

USA contributed lots of solid power electronics acts in the past, and now it is Ohio based Nyodene D to bring their vision of experimentation through the new record 'Edenfall'. Being active since 2009, the band already released a pack of albums in different formats, from tapes to cds. Joining forces with Malignant records, the label that had been extremely active during 2012, they strike heavily with double cd which contains not only their recent album, but also the collaborative cd with a highly acclaimed Portuguese formation Sektor 304, and all that savory is packed in a beautifully designed limited edition box.

From the very beginning Nyodene D loads my speakers with a heavy artillery of industrial distorted tunes, full of agonizing metal parts, lo-fi hum and a slight touch of rhythm, while the first track "Edenfall" blasts out guided by offensive dirty vocal session, splashing the territory with power and rage. The transformation into "Damnatio Memoriae" brings a lot of pulsating violence; highly oppressive atmosphere becomes slowly saturated with a wall of scratching sound balancing on the edge of power noise where the vocals don't spare energy and support the structure as well. The same drive presents in the third track "Anasazi", but with a less violent background, though the thin rhythm is still there together with an extensive enthusiasm to blow up my speakers with an overloaded machinery. The album has no specific definition of genre relationship; elements of power electronics, death industrial and dark ambient genres are mixed together in diverse proportions, changing the saturation of layers from track to track giving each composition its own face. Indeed, the fourth track "Scars of Anthropology" differs from its brothers and steps into the field of pure power electronics, where there is no exact structure, meantime brutal vocals lean on a noise flow of certain density. It is definitely not bad composition; however it doesn't stand out from everything that I have already heard in the past. Meanwhile, the tastiest stuff was kept for the end of the meal. "Scars of Anthropology" clears space for "Nihilation", a truly massive track with a reach gamut of emotional background. Heavy plangent drones capture the stage, growling chanting joins this act of mental vandalism aside the regular vocal session, injecting even more fuel into the fire of imagination full of images of apocalyptic warfare. And in order to complete the journey between the scenes of insanity, the last track with a long name "Borne On Vulture's Beak, I Am Carried Into The Heavens" changes mood into almost dark ambient structure; to those of us that are familiar with the scene it can remind a little bit of Isomer compositions.

While this record itself is a strong challenge for every virgin spirit, Malignant records didn't stop on achieved effect and decide to confirm the kill with a collaborative cd of Nyodene D together with Seketor 304. Each band contributes from its special sound and effort in order to create a sonic soundscape of destructive and gloomy shape. Sektor 304 adds a lot of rhythm created by different workshop tools, while Nyodene D implement an atmosphere of devastation, making the sharp corners of their noisy origin much smoother, nevertheless, without losing sense of power. The bands work as a team conjuring the spirit of cooperation in order to create something different from what they usually play. As a result of this productive action, the listener receives a great bonus cd full of recognizable tracks like "The Human Fractal", "Furnace", "The Shaft" and all the rest, putting cherry on top of the cream.

To sum it up, Malignant records add one more strong record to the rich portfolio of its success. All the tracks have their own faces; some of them are not always the state of art but they are always full of energy that compensates the lack of technique or diversity in musical composing process. But what is totally clear is that Nyodene D has a huge potential and we will hear even better releases from them in the future. Oct 25 2012